


Up for Hire?

by River_Nix



Series: Red Marking [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Mafia AU, Court of Owls, Crime Boss Jason Todd, Good Friend Roy Harper, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture, Jason Todd is Red Hood, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-17 14:28:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28975893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/River_Nix/pseuds/River_Nix
Summary: The Red Hood had encountered many threats during his evolution from a member of no importance to the leader of his own gang. Some were too dangerous and needed to be put down while others had the right type of potential for recruitment.What category did this new player fall into?
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Ric Grayson, Dick Grayson/Jason Todd, Dick Grayson/Jason Todd/Ric Grayson, Koriand'r & Jason Todd, Ric Grayson/Jason Todd, Roy Harper & Jason Todd, Roy Harper & Koriand'r & Jason Todd
Series: Red Marking [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2113110
Comments: 6
Kudos: 26





	Up for Hire?

Jason didn’t believe it when he first heard it. In fact, he had been so convinced that Roy was bullshittting him for shits and giggles that he was tempted to smack his lieutenant (and best friend) upside the head. The Joker, killed? It wasn’t just unbelievable because the man was a lot more difficult to outmaneuver and out skill than people gave him credit for, but also because he was supposedly someone who had a lot of powerful allies in the crime world. Naturally, there would be those who benefited from his death, but still…He was a hard cookie to get to. The Joker may have been somewhat of a lone wolf with only fearful, muscled sheep as his companions - the occasional brainiac or two making their way in when logistics needed to be figured out - but he wasn’t to be messed with. Even in a game of numbers. Or, at least, that was the case the last time Jason checked. 

Who was responsible? 

Not only who did the kill and all of that, but who arranged it? 

Jason needed to know and he needed to know soon. Whoever this person was, it was hard not to feel uneasy about them. There was some respect for them as well, sure, but it didn’t cancel out the building anxiousness. They had taken out one of Gotham’s royalty when it came to the kingdom of crime and the underworld of Hell while remaining safely hidden. It spoke volumes about their skill and, perhaps, their relation to the other crime lords in the city. Of which included himself, as the leader of the Red Hoods. 

“I think you’re being a bit dramatic right now.” Roy  _ ‘Arsenal’  _ Harper knew that Jason had reasons to be worried about this news - goods reasons. However, pacing about it and grumbling about “somehow missing something” and “starting a manhunt” was a bit much for their early steps. It was disappointing that someone so capable had slipped through their fingers, but without having any clues on where to look, any searches would be useless. For all they knew, they could easily get sucked into an endless circle of manipulation and fake truths that only led to their downfall in the end. “We need more information before putting too much action into the equation.” 

Jason paused in his pacing, if only to turn and give Roy an unimpressed look. “Nobody even knows who did this.” His frown turned into a full-on scowl, “and even if anybody did, they probably wouldn’t come forward so easily.” Aside from the obvious threat of the Joker’s killer coming after them, it was a power move to keep such a deadly weapon a secret. Hired hitman or assassins who targeted whoever their masters wished weren’t new to the crime world or Jason, which just made everything even more complicated. Because now he had to worry not only about the fact that someone could get to someone like the Joker, he had to worry about possible in-circle fighting. It wouldn’t be the first time, seeing as how many enemies Roman  _ ‘Black Mask’ _ Sionis had killed in his name instead of by his own hands. 

(Jason prayed to whoever was listening that it wasn’t good-old Roman behind this. Their relationship, while not necessarily bad, wasn’t good enough that he trusted the other to leave him alone. Their respective groups and individual capabilities have kept the other useful for now. It would be so...tragic...to see that balance break before both were ready for the war to come.) 

“So we wait back and see what rumors come up.” Roy was smart enough to not hop onto the first or even the most plausible news when it came to the grapevine. Oftentimes, it was a waste of time and energy trying to decipher all of the words that flowed so easily and twisted without any attempt at lying. Though, he wouldn’t delude by saying that all rumors had no use. Some well-placed ones could do some good for whoever was pulling the strings. It put everyone else on edge and (sometimes) made them a bit more willing to cooperate with others in the name of surviving themselves. If they waited patiently and listened to who was being accused of either knowing or being associated with whoever did this, then they had a target to keep an eye on. The accused or the accuser; after all, only those so quick to point fingers had things to hide for a good portion of the time.

“Rumors are already here.” Jason brought a hand to his face as he approached Roy, stopping just opposite of the other man. With him seated on his desk, it made him just the tiniest bit taller than his boss. A bit irritating, considering that Jason wasn’t used to (and didn’t want to get used to) looking up at Roy when he was used to them being close in height. It had little to do with any type of insecurity that came with height (they were both shorter than Kori by a head), and more with the fact that he literally had to look into Roy’s amused eyes as he tried to be the reasonable one. It was so strange to think about - him trying to be more logical than his lieutenant when it was supposed to be more balanced between them. “Apparently, I’m high on the suspect list since I hated that bastard the most out of everyone else.” 

“You sure about that?” On a normal basis, Roy wouldn’t dare try to argue against that. Ever since the days when Joker had tortured and tried to kill Jason (back when the other was much less efficient in his position), his friend had harbored a deep-seated hatred towards the other. It didn’t help that, compared to other crime lords in the area, Jason managed to hold on to some morals that the Joker happily stomped over. One of them being his lack of care when it came to harming innocent children. 

As twisted as that was and as much as Jason had a right to want the Joker dead, Roy had heard something different. Different enough that he wasn’t sure how worried he should be that Jason hadn’t heard yet. He informed him, surely? 

“Apparently, he and Two-Face had a little disagreement that turned into a nasty grudge-case.” Roy pushed himself off of Jason’s desk, careful not to kick or touch his boss in any way. “Clown Prince stole some territory and some important goods for God knows what reason and didn’t bother to try smoothing it over.” 

That didn’t sound like the Joker at all. Sure, he was one to poke fun and disrespect his colleagues whenever he felt like having a laugh. He wasn’t the friendliest asshole in the club either, but he knew better than to piss off other crime lords. Especially ones that have been present for as long as he had - people like Black Mask and Two-Face. For him to make that type of movement must have either been an act of desperation or there was something deeper going on. Desperation...unlikely. The Joker has robbed banks to pay off anything he didn’t have the money on hand for or just killed those he owed if they were insignificant enough. Therefore, it was likely that the whole story hadn’t been revealed among the lower ranks. The immediate assumption would be that it was Two-Face who owed the Joker some sort of favor and didn’t pay it back, leading the make-up covered bastard to forcefully take some other form of payment. 

“So, he paid the price then?” Jason thought it over for a few moments after Roy nodded. On one hand, it was kinda funny that Joker managed to get himself killed by being his typical, irritating self. Whatever the reason be for his thievery in this specific case, karma from every other time he had managed to screw someone over had taken place at least. It was all too easy to try and imagine how his death might have gone; if he had been killed off quickly to get the job done or if his murderer was sadistic enough to take his time. Truly, a toxic place for his mind to go. And only because Jason knew that did he force himself to move back to his second thought - they needed to find who did this. 

“I haven’t heard of anyone confronting Two-Face about it, but money’s on him; yes.” Roy supposed he could get Kori to check it out for them, assuming that the initiation tests for their potential recruits were still going smoothly. He’d do it himself if he didn’t already know that he’d be too preoccupied with keeping Jason focused on his other work and preparing the two of them for some important upcoming meetings. One in particular that they’ve been putting off in hopes of not adding more stress to their lives. It has been a while since Penguin’s checked in with them about his dues and it was more than appropriate to send him a small warning by now. “I’d say that if you really wanna nip this in the bud that quickly, then make yourself seem more eager than worried.” 

_ Seem eager about possibly being killed?  _ Jason couldn’t find it in himself to even try and understand what angle Roy was trying to go for with that. “How so?” 

“I don’t know. Lie about needing someone dead too, or something?” Roy’s boots made no sound as he walked across the room to get to Jason’s filing cabinet, pulling out the second-to-last drawer for examination. “If this is a hitman and someone on the top hired them then they’re more likely to be open about it if you seem less unwelcoming to the idea of their chosen weapon.” There weren’t too many files in there - currently - since they were pretty good about getting their missions done in an organized manner. But, surely, Roy could find someone to use as a small excuse? Something as simple as a tracking mission would work, if only because the target was good at evading while this assassin seemed good at seeking. “Ya know, typical mind-play.” 

Well, when Roy put it that way, Jason was a lot more open to that idea. It allowed him to remain close enough that he’d be able to learn more about this mystery person, but far enough that neither him, his gang, nor their work were in any direct danger. “Not a bad idea.” He just needed to figure out who would be a good candidate. Judging by how Roy was already searching through his files, he trusted that the other had some form of a basis already. Not that it stopped Jason from imagining things himself. Obviously, presenting something that seemed like a waste of time would just be an insult and he’d be giving this person a reason not to respect him. It had to be worth it. 

“Wait, ya know what?” Roy suddenly snapped his fingers. His face lit up momentarily before dimming once more into something a bi more mischievous. “I’ve got it. Instead of wasting our time with old bird brain, why don’t we just hire someone else to do it? We’ve got no idea where he is and there has to be better ways to spend time than look for someone we’re likely gonna execute anyway.” 

_ Huh.  _ Jason rather liked that idea. If it meant that he wouldn’t have to look at that fat fuck for more than a second, then by all means! Though, he did have some business to get done with the older man before he could entertain the thought. Hopefully, this assassin wouldn’t be too annoyed if Jason had him hunt down Penguin, but stall with killing him for a bit? It would only take a few days to make all of the necessary arrangements to make sure that Penguin didn’t have anything up his sleeve for when he finally left this Earth. That would be fine, right? 

“I’ll have Kori alert the other heads that we need to come together.” Roy could see how Jason’s thoughts had started to wander again. He may as well play his part as the best friend and pass on the simple task to their other trusted one so that he could help arrange their presentation. 

**_∾∾∾∾∾∾∾∾∾∾∾∾_ **

“Red Hood.” 

Just as Roy had predicted. 

“Two-Face.” Jason nodded his head, his eyes continuing straight forward so that his eyes were on both the door and the man in front of him. He wanted to make sure that he and Two-Face would be alone for their discussion. To this day, he was glad that he had ignored Kori’s advice on getting a helmet that only covered parts of his face. It meant that he could freely let his emotions show beneath the surface without having to worry about his colleagues commenting on his expression. As long as he kept his voice blank or angry, then they would be kept in the dark about whatever he was thinking. Surprisingly, not as difficult even when he was still inexperienced. 

It was difficult to not point out the elephant in the room when everyone had taken their seats. Not only because he was happy that he didn’t have to see the Joker, but because Penguin and Scarecrow were suspiciously absent. Penguin, Jason could understand. Or, try to, at least. The man was either scared of the possibility that Jason would confront him when he showed his face or he was already in a tough position and seeing Jason wouldn’t help his case. For Scarecrow, on the other hand, Jason was completely in the dark. And he knew that he wasn’t the only one. Pamela  _ ‘Poison Ivy’ _ Isley and Edward  _ ‘The Riddler _ ’ Nygma had made their gaze around the meeting table obvious after Jason listed off who he had invited. Nobody made a comment on the disappearances, not even when he asked for the whereabouts of Penguin. It was a bit frustrating that everyone seemed to be so uncaring about it, but he could understand. 

Nobody around the table was a...friend, per se. They all had their trusted ones close and got the affection they needed from their own groups. There was nothing left to offer their allies. Other than helping each other when there was something to gain there was, maybe, a very practical version of ‘caring’ when it came to their relationships. Anything beyond that wasn’t recommended and honestly? Nobody seemed too bothered to push for better. 

This though, this type of interaction seemed to be the ‘helping each other’ category. Assuming, of course, that Two-Face was gonna say what Jason was hoping he’d say. As the door finally clicked shut, signaling Poison Ivy’s departure, Two-Face continued to speak: “It must be unpleasant that Penguin is being so...unreliable...right now. I can understand the frustration that comes with arrangements not being met.” 

“I’m sure we all can.” Jason let himself lean back into his chair, pushing one side of his unzipped leather jacket to the side to expose his weapon. It was safely tucked into its holster, but the threat of being able to draw it out within seconds was palpable. Among them, it was well-known that the Red Hood was the most capable when it came to firearms. So, even if Two-Face wasn’t incompetent, he had all of the appropriate reasons to be worried. Not that he was Jason’s target at this moment. “I suppose it’s partially my fault. I should have cracked down harder on him when I started getting suspicious. Oh well, lesson learned for the future then. Right?” 

The way that Two-Face’s adams’ apple moved signaled that he had just swallowed. A telltale sign that he was starting to feel a bit suffocated in the atmosphere that Jason had brought in. The implication couldn’t have been lost to him. All of them knew what type of Hell the others could bestow if ever given a reason. Normally, he’d relish in the thought of having such an effect and the control to exercise it so easily. But for now, he didn’t want to scare Two-Face too much. Otherwise, he’d never get what he wanted.

“Look, I...I know a guy.” Two-Face cleared his throat, likely to get rid of the slight stutter that snuck into his words. “Someone who specializes in making sure that everyone pays their dues.” A small curl of his upper-lip revealed a not-so-hidden sneer of disgust. If Jason had to wager, then he’d bet that he was referencing Joker’s death.

_ Wait...shit!  _ Jason completely forgot. He wanted to bring that up at some point, but everyone actively trying to avoid the topic must have distracted him.  _ God-fucking-damnit! _

“If you’d like, I can offer you his contact information. Though, I should warn you, he’s very strict about what he expects.” 

“Oh?” Not that Jason was expecting anything less. He didn’t deal with hitmen as much as he thought he would be when he first started this gig, but he never saw that as a bad thing. The one he knew well-enough to somewhat trust in terms of ability was Slade Wilson and the familiarity made Jason emotionally immune to the guy’s high prices or other requirements when it came to the kill. Hopefully, all assassins were more similar than he was willing to give them credit for. Otherwise, this would be a very short trip towards a headache. “How so?” 

“There’s one detail that I, personally, have found a bit bothersome. But...he still got the job done, so perhaps I was just being a bit too paranoid.” There was no such thing as ‘too paranoid’ when you were dealing with a professional hitman. Or, if there was, then Jason hasn’t seen it yet. If someone was being recommended, then he trusted that they’d be able to do the job. He just wasn’t always sure about loyalty. Double-crossing was, unfortunately, something that he always forced himself to be prepared for. “He likes to keep to himself during the actual mission and if you hassle him too much while he’s working, then there’s a strong chance he'll drop you.” 

“Mhm...” The first part of that statement did sound a bit worrying. Jason liked to think that he hasn’t ever been overly observative, but this person sounded like they were supposed to go their separate ways until the job was done. How was he supposed to know what was happening and if the guy he hired needed something if they didn’t keep in touch? What if something went wrong or new information was coming in that Jason needed to deliver? It made sense that someone wouldn’t want anything to bother them while they were trying to take out a crime lord. For fucks’ sake, that type of job was dangerous! However, radio silence didn’t sound the most pleasing. 

No reason to stop Two-Face at that, though. If Jason needed to, he could find a way to work through it. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time he’s had to…’adjust’. Or cover behind some guise to get his work done. 

“And?” 

“The prices can vary depending on what the objective is and the number of people involved, but I don’t suppose that’s anything new.” 

The last time Jason had to work with Deathstroke, the man mostly focused on how many he was gonna kill and who those people were when it came to charges. The guy had access to a wealth of information and equipment though, so Jason supposed that the extra expenses were needed. 

“So, basically, torture to get information and just flat up putting some fucker down will be priced differently. Nice to know.” Jason was in that realm, so it was relieving to know that this person could be adaptable. As long as he was able to pay the necessary money and keep his observation to a minimum, then this was shaping up to be quite promising. “Anything else?” 

Two-Face shook his head. “Just give him any information he asks for when starting and then leave him alone. In my experience, he’s good with timing on his own. He usually has you pay after the job is done, so just make sure that you don’t do anything too expensive while he’s working.” 

“Does he?” Well, that was surprisingly considerate. He’d like to think that being paid first meant that you would have a bit more freedom since the money was already gone. Then again, it could be hunted back if the hired help didn’t deliver. If this guy was asking for payment afterward, then that could only mean that he knew he’d get everything done. Jason supposed that this guy must be good enough to hold that type of confidence. How did someone with that type of reputation slip past him? He liked to think that he was well-informed or that an assassin would want to be known to the important individuals of the underworld. Who would hire him, then? 

Two-Face nodded before digging through his pockets. With everything that needed to be said out in the open, all that was left was for him to leave Jason the card so that he could leave. The lack of a goodbye or farewell hardly offended Jason, all he could focus on was the paper in his hand. It wasn’t a typical business card. If he were to hazard a guess, then he’d say that this wasn’t even something that belonged to the assassin. It was more likely that Two-Face had written down the information after getting it from someone else and just handed his findings off. 

Who was this guy if their information had to be passed through people? Sure, having a website wasn’t exactly the best idea, but having contact information out there would be a good business practice. Unless there was something Jason was missing? He  _ did _ barely know this guy, so who was he to judge? 

“Talon, huh?” An interesting name. Very, very interesting. Familiar too. One that had Jason’s lip curling upwards in a small sneer behind his helmet.

The Red Hood eagerly pushed for his gang to be part of the operation that went to hunt the Court of Owls down. The image that greeted the entire group when they had finally arrived at the correct location wouldn’t leave his mind in the foreseeable future - partly from the shock and partly from the experience of it all. The structures within the hidden area, the members, the furniture - all of it was in an extreme state of disarray. It wouldn’t be surprising if someone had told him that an actual war had occurred in the various chambers. The main room was bathed in bodies and blood; walls and high ceilings covered to the brim with death and misery. It was an impressive sight, if not the tiniest bit disturbing. The way that the bodies were strewn around suggested that it had been a mass killing. Someone either arranged for most of The Court to be in the same area at the same time for their execution or (and this was a tiny chance) the members had been taken by surprise while they were doing something. Having a meeting, or whatever it was that The Court of Owls did. 

Jason didn’t make it his business to research whatever those creeps did in their spare time. The fact that they kidnapped kids to torture into warriors had him hating them from the start. Then from there, it was rumored that they had developed some sort of serum that...well, it was confusing. Jason didn’t remember right off of the bat, but it either prevented death or it revived someone and made them unkillable as a result. Either one was extremely fucked up and he only hoped that there was no human experimentation that came with that whole package when it came to the captive children. They already had to suffer through several combative trials and being frozen when they weren’t in use. 

_ Talon…The Court’s loyal enforcers, huh?  _

Jason hated The Court, but if this was a Talon, then he may actually let him live. Depending on how old this guy was, he could very well be someone who escaped the mass murder. They found the room where frozen Talons were kept and, surprise-surprise, all of them were empty. Jason refused to believe that any Talon could integrate back into ‘normal’ life without any sort of help, so a scour of the city had been done for several months before quits were called. If there were any surviving members, then they had long moved on from this wretched place. 

At least, that was the initial thought. 

This was turning out to be quite the interesting game if Talon actually turned out to be a survivor from that cult instead of just a random dude with a predator-bird name. 

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like I could have come up with something more believable that would have pushed Two-Face into giving up Ric’s contact info to Jason, but I didn’t want to push it too much. This has a focus and I’m trying to keep everything around that. Jason doesn’t know about Talon, so even if he learned about the symbols around the kills, he’d still be like: “Ok, great, this is the same killer. Now, who is it?! I want a name!”   
> Also, sorry in advance if I say something wrong about The Court of Owls. I’m trying to keep all of the facts correct (even though this is fiction and all of that), but some of it is a bit confusing. Please bear with me. 
> 
> Other than that, here’s my [Tumblr](https://river-nix.tumblr.com/) if anyone wants to message me or find my Ko-Fi info, commissions are still open. Or if anyone wants to donate to support me, anything is appreciated. Thanks, everyone!


End file.
